Erin Beatty hosts Rentrayage’s fall presentation at a West Village café. The vibrant energy of the interior complements the collection, which relies heavily on reworked denim, one of the brand’s strengths. “We’ve learned a lot more about denim,” Beatty said. “I love the idea of playing with some typical American styles, but taking it to another level. But there’s also a lot of old jeans, you know…”
Italy has a lot of really great ones too A dead-stock wool suiting fabric, they pair perfectly with denim this season. She pieced together the trouser legs of a pair of jeans to create a high-waisted skirt and added cotton ruffle inlays, while a longer plaid blazer was appliquéd with a paneled denim bodice , whose silhouette is inspired by traditional women’s cycling jackets. She also reinvented a denim jacket and pieced it together with quilted glen check fabric. On the front, the bottom of the pockets stick out about an inch or two—perhaps a nod to the classic look of cutoffs with visible pocket liners. Except the vibe here is less hair metal and more Balmoral Queen Elizabeth. (Check out the collage of a cotton trench coat with a half tweed blazer, or a glen plaid coat with a detachable quilted black vest, definitely one of the best pieces in the collection.) It has certain Japanese designer’s sensibility, but finished in a Beatty unique way.
Complementing the collection are sturdy caramel cotton twill slouchy pieces and beautiful black and yellow floral-print silk viscose, which she mixes with gray and black floral prints, Create layered ruffled dresses and skirts “I feel like I don’t have to prove myself in a certain way anymore, but what I really want is to make clothes that people actually want to wear,” explains Beatty. “Haute couture and elegant dresses – something you want to invest in, you see it and you’re like ‘I want to wear this’.”
